Hard to Control
by PrettypurpleRogue
Summary: It's alive! And it wants Rogue. How do you escape a stalker, over-bearing teamates, and an all-powerful mutant? This is going to require aspirin. Romy. ABANDONED, IF YOU WISH TO ADOPT, REVIEW AND TELL ME.
1. Chapter 1

Author Ramblings: I have no idea why I'm doing this when I have another story still in the works, but this hit me and I couldn't say no. Please review.

Disclaimer: I don't own the X-Men.

Gambit stepped forward off of Worthington's property and into the darkened street. The relic that Mesmero sought clutched in his hand. Gambit sauntered forward to give the half of the spider to him. The cloaked mutant reached forward to receive it. Having secured it, and the mutant he was controlling looking on, he started in the shadows.

The posts of a nearby fence started to groan and break away. Mesmero started to run but the posts shot up and trapped him. "Whoever you are, you've got courage." A caped mutant flew down in front of Mesmero. "Not everyone would hypnotize one of mine to do their stealing." The trapped mutant tried to use his telepathy on Magneto. "Don't bother, your psychic blasts do not affect me."

Mesmero glared behind him and Gambit took out a charged card. The straight metal poles around Mesmero twisted and constricted like cobras. Mesmero was so wrapped up, he looked like a metal mummy. "Release your mental hold on Gambit. Now!" The metal snakes got tighter.

"Alright." The wrapped up mutant complied. The metal poles went straight.

"Ugh," Gambit moaned, "where am I?"

Out of the shadows behind the Master of Magnetism, stepped a fourth figure. It moved silently until it was an arm's length away from Magneto's back and raised a hand toward his neck. Then, from out of the robbed building came Warren Worthington III. He dive-bombed Gambit with a cry. He stopped when he saw the figure behind Magneto. Apparently from the angle he was at, he saw something that the others didn't and it was familiar to him. He flew toward the figure. Magneto levitated away. Warren swept the figure up bridal style. He soared into air. Now that he could clearly see whom he was carrying, he could hardly believe his eyes! On the ground, Mesmero was working his power. Warren dropped on the ground a few feet behind Gambit. He was unconscious. There was no sign of the mysterious figure. The bars making Mesmero's cage slowly flew up, then back to their places in the fence. The figure re-emerges from the shadows and walks mechanically until it is next to Mesmero.

"Chere?"

Author Ramblings continued: I have had a sucky day so I thought at least someone should benefit. Please review and help my day get better.


	2. Chapter 2

Author Ramblings: I probably shouldn't even be typing this, but if anyone asks, I'll say it's homework for typing class. So please, please pretty super super please review! Tell me anything; I'll even accept one-word reviews. For now I think I'll thank the first reviewers:

Demon Flame: Thanks and you're wait is over!

BasiaM82: Thanks, I didn't think I was the first one to think of this possibility and post a story about it. I hope you like this.

The newly unbound Mesmero smirked and his eyes flashed. Rogue's did too and she held her hand out towards Magneto. He tried to get the metal from the fence, but found a greater power was holding it in place. Mesmero chuckled, "I'll take that back now." The relic that Magneto had snatched from Mesmero before Rogue appeared flew out of the Master of Magnetism's hand and to Rogue. She gave it to Mesmero. "We'll be going now, if you don't mind." Mesmero and Rogue walked away. They didn't even get ten feet when Rogue got hit on the head and blacked out.

The metal manhole that smacked her upside her pretty head retreated back to Magneto like a faithful doggy. It flattened and increased in size so that it could easily accommodate three, maybe four people if they squeezed and someone held their breath and sucked in their gut. The carpooler motioned for his lackey to grab the X-Man. He then used the now free posts to re-secure his prisoner.

Gambit sauntered over to Rogue, all confidence on the outside, but all worry for his chere on the inside. He gently picked her up.

An angel on the ground, unconscious. A metal disk with a caped man, a trench coated man, and unconscious girl with white stripes in her hair being carried by said trench coated man, and man with many tattoos in a dark cloak. Oh yeah, they weren't noticeable at all.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

It was about one in the morning when the odd quartet arrived at Magneto's base of operations. The other lackeys were awakened. Sabertooth trudged out of his room with a metal leash tied around his neck. Pyro was toddling down to the metal meeting room, clutching his flamethrowers, Amy and Beatrice respectively, who even seemed to have small discontented looks on for being awakened at such an awful hour. Piotr was mentally tallying the 'Reasons I hate Magneto' list he had and decided this particular incident should come in at number four. Mastermind was already up and, for some reason, was the last to come down. Once everyone had been rudely awakened and dragged down to his favorite meeting room, Magneto started interrogating Mesmero. Before the first question was hurled, Rogue snapped awake with a groan and growl. The Master of Magnetism was thrown back and Rogue jumped protectively in front of Mesmero like a mother bear guarding her young.

"Call her off." Magneto commanded while straightening his bucket. Mesmero thought about it and nodded. Rogue immediately sat down next to him. It was creepy how she moved. She had her legs crossed at the ankles, her hands were clasped together in her lap, and she was sitting up straight so that her back wasn't touching the chair. As a whole, she looked like the poster child for prim and proper. The only thing that ruined that was her face. There was no little prim and proper smile; her face was just blank, as were her eyes. Remy was tempted to walk up to her and tap on her head and say 'Anyone home?', but he didn't of course, because that would make him look stupid in front of his boss and fellow lackeys. Plus Rogue might kill him. The others were just now realizing the striped beauty and her controller were in the room. Before someone did something stupid like try and fight Rogue, Magneto quickly gave a summary of the night's events to his lackeys. All the while Mesmero was examining his surroundings, looking bored, and Rogue never moved, she didn't even blink.

Magneto gave Mastermind a look. This look said, 'Get her out of his control and into mine.' Mastermind nodded. Mesmero's eyes narrowed, having also seen the look, 'This is going to be fun,' he smirked. Mastermind glided over to Rogue. He began to work his mind tricks. Almost the second he entered her mind he began to scream. His body shook and his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he collapsed. Magneto and lackeys stood dumbfounded and flabbergasted. Mesmero had that look that some humans can do but all cats have perfected, this look said 'Yes, something happened and I'm all kicks and giggles that it happened, but I didn't do it.' (A/R My cat is evil!)

Mastermind jumped up. Instead of being furious or scared like they expected him to be, he practically radiated happiness and excitement. "Was that…?" He asked Mesmero while frantically motioning at Rogue.

Mesmero seemed to have the same look. He nodded, "Yeah it was. It is everything they said it would be." The two continued to chatter excitedly about what was apparently the Holy Grail to telepaths.

Magneto and lackeys just stood around awkwardly, except for Pyro who fell asleep and was now curled up and cuddling his two friends to his chest. Finally, Magneto couldn't take it anymore and screamed, "Will you two shut up?" The two did. Rogue still hadn't moved or blinked. "What were you talking about anyway?"

The two looked at each other and started to giggle hysterically. Each conscious male, and whatever Sabertooth is, each raised an eyebrow.

"Nothing," said Mastermind after calming down a bit, "a rumor I heard has been confirmed, that's all."

"Explain." Magneto was surprised.

"Well, you know all those cat magazines I get every month?" Everyone nodded and shivered. " Well, they're actually telepath gossip magazines. And for a while now, there has been a running column on Rogue. She is the hottest thing now, what with her multiple psyches and many lifetimes. The articles describe what her mind is like and I thought it was just hogwash, but it's true!"

"Yes, she is hard to control, isn't she?" Mesmero smiled proudly.

Mastermind looked like a bobble head as he nodded vigorously. "Yes. Yes she is. I must know how are you doing it?"

"A magician never revels his secrets." Mesmero was smug.

"May I?" The monkey looking mutant again gestured at Rogue. Her controller nodded. The monkey placed his hands to his head and tried again. This time there was no screaming, but he was hardly in her mind for ten seconds before he was harshly eradicated.

Rogue finally blinked and when her eyes were open, they were completely black. "Please cease and desist from trying to enter my mind." Everyone was in awe. When she spoke, it was not the feminine, drawling accented voice, but a voice made up of many tones and accents saying the same thing at the exact same time. It was very unnerving. Rogue tilted her head and Mastermind was gone.

Author Ramblings continued: Well, I hope this is as good as it is in my head. Please, please, please review!


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Ramblings: I'm back and better than ever, baby!

Disclaimer: I only own my kick-butt attitude (but it's enough)!

Magneto was getting his metal underpants in a bunch. "Bring my monkey lackey back this instant!" Mesmero tilted his head and in a puff of smoke, Mastermind was back. Except for the fact that he was covered in snow and shivering, everything was the same as before.

"That-that-that was incredible! Where was I?" He really seemed excited, which was very odd for the monkey man, seeing as how he never really showed any emotions.

"Siberia," Rogue answered in the cold, emotionless, one voice out of many they had heard her use before.

"Amazing," the shivering and soaking wet man murmured.

"It is, isn't it?" Mesmero questioned proudly.

"Did you make her do that?" Once again, the two telepaths had that 'kid in a candy store' look about them.

"Yes, my control over her lets me have at my disposal all the powers she has ever absorbed!" Mastermind made an appreciative noise. "I can freeze, melt, throw, punch, kick, send psyche blasts at, read the mind of, strike with lightning, and change into the form of ANYONE I CHOOSE!" the tattooed telepath cackled. The monkey telepath clapped.

The laughing came to a screeching halt. Mesmero had a squinting look on his face for a second. "I apologize but my charge and I must be going now." Then they were gone.

"Find them! I don't care what it takes, find them!" Gambit, Sabertooth, Pyro, and Colossus nodded and ran out of the room. "And you!" The enraged Master of Magnetism dramatically whirled around to point at the still giggling telepath. "We will be going to inform Charles of what exactly his X-Man is doing!" With an even more dramatic whirl of his cape, the Master of Magnetism left the metal dome.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

Gambit was on his trusty bike with a burning Ace of Spades card on the side. Colossus was on a sleek black bike; Pyro was on a smack-you-in-the-face bright neon orange bike. Sabertooth was on his skull handlebars bike. They were all wearing their uniforms, and Colossus, now that he was away from Magneto, was metaled up. They were prowling the streets between the base and Bayville. So far, if Fluffy's sniffer was correct, they were nowhere near the trail. As Remy rode through the darkened and trashy alleys, his thoughts were about Rogue. Where she was, if she was okay, was she thinking of him too, was Mesmero hurting her? The mention of the mutant in the cloak sent a wave of righteous anger through him. How dare Mesmero take control of his mind, how dare he use him like a mindless puppet! The next time Gambit saw Rogue's controller, it wasn't going to be pretty.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

The X-children were playing baseball. 'How cute,' the bucket-headed mutant mused. Apparently they had not noticed their missing teammate, or been warned of the new mind-controlling telepath in town. Strange, you'd think since the Angel was such good friends with the X-Men, he would have warned them. 'Oh well, better for me. I do like making a big entrance,' Magneto smirked. And make a big entrance he did.

"Magneto!" At their fearless leader's call, the X-Men scrambled. Nightcrawler bamfed over to the stands to protect the crowd. Magma and Iceman powered up. All those in the outfield came in and all took defensive positions. Cyclops raised a hand to the side of his visor and shouted, "Why are you here, what do you want?"

The caped, flying mutant sighed and forced himself not to roll his eyes at them. "I wish to speak to Charles."

"Hello Erik. To what do I owe this surprise?" A bald man in a wheelchair appeared on the scene, thanks to one of his students who can pass through solid matter.

Magneto was pleased, "Ah Charles, just the man I wanted to speak to. Do you know where your students are?"

Despite the nagging feeling that his old friend knew something he didn't, the Professor answered, "Yes, a majority of them are here, playing baseball. The rest are being helped with homework by Storm."

"Oh really? Well, from the faces here, I notice a specific one missing. Tell me, where is the Rogue?"

The Professor did a scan of his property and found that Rogue was nowhere to be found. "I-I don't know." If he wasn't cautious and nervous before, he was now; for if a certain student a certain enemy was inquiring about was missing, that could only lead to bad things.

Author's Ramblings continued: Little bit of a cliffhanger if you squint. Okay, I just wanted to make this clear: I will accept any and all reviews, even one-word update reviews. TALK TO ME (I get lonely )!


	4. Chapter 4

Author Ramblings: Okay, I did this to the best of my ability. It's not perfect, so sue me. Oh and by the way, no accents.

Disclaimer: Don't own.

Erik found his old friend's nerves amusing. Then he really thought, 'What do I owe Charles? Do I really want to tell him of his student's activities? Will I benefit more from telling him, or trying to control the girl myself?' "You don't know? Well I am shocked! I thought it would be your policy to know where all your students were at all times. But I guess not. Alright, well I've satisfied my curiosity of the Xavier Institute's rules, good day, Charles." Leaving with his lackey and leaving some conflicting emotions behind, the Master of Magnetism flew off into the midday sun.

"What was that about?" The person who made the statement could not be identified, for at that moment, Iceman did his thing and caught most of the older kids in his range. War cries sounded to the beautiful blue sky, courtesy of a certain weather witch, and the mutant softball game was on. The X-Men's leader was far less carefree however, and his fellow instructors noticed.

"Charles?" The man turned monster (on the outside at least) known as Beast, was worried for he had never seen his friend so deep in thought and dare he say it, looking so old and worn.

"I don't know what that was about," the regal man finally stated, "but I have a feeling we're going to find out." There was an ominous tone in Charles Xavier's voice that was usually filled with hope, calm, and peace. At that moment, Angel appeared and told the tale of what happened last night, but he left out one important detail. He forgot Rogue was there, which is actually pretty understandable, seeing as he received a very nasty bump on the head. The Professor, Beast, the red head, Cyclops, Angel and the stowaway were dispatched to where the other half of Warren's spider is. On the rooftop of a building a few blocks away from the London Museum, the X-copter touched down.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

After departing from his old friend's property and getting back to his base, Magnus got some good news. "While they were at our base, I wasn't able to infiltrate her mind, but his was very easy to get into. I discovered the relic would help unleash the most powerful mutant the world has ever seen; En Sabah Nur, you will know him as Apocalypse. Also, the relic has another piece, which resides at the London Museum." Mastermind informed.

"Very well. Then we should go and retrieve this other half. You!" He blasted at the other four Acolytes who were just returning now. "Get ready, we're going to London." Holding back groans, all but Mastermind got in the stuffy, dark orbs that were the Master's preferred way to travel.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

At the X-mansion, the softball game had long ended. Kurt went down to the med lab that was his sister's home for the moment. When he got there and did not see her in her place, he panicked. He teleported to her and Kitty's room to ask if she had been seen, but he found her. She was in her orange and green pajamas, reading a book in bed. "There you are! I was so worried. Why aren't you in the med lab? Oh, Mr. McCoy is probably going to freak."

His tirade was interrupted by a psychic blast. He slumped to the floor. His mind-controlled sister walked over to him, put a hand on his covered shoulder, and teleported them to his room. Once there, she tucked him in and wiped his mind of the last five minutes. When she was done with her brother, she opened his window and flew out to meet her master.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

The museum was quiet; the guards on duty had no idea of the danger that was coming closer, and the fact that they were going to become the playthings of several mutants. The front doors were suddenly wrenched open by some unseen force. "Fan out. Secure the building," were Magneto's orders to his troops, and they did.

In the guardroom, Clive Halt, a thirty-two year old father of one teenage girl, was on break. The alarm began to sound and he raised his walkie-talkie to his face, saying, "Someone want to check that glitch in the alarm system? I'm on a break." He said all this while still examining his solitaire game with a critical eye.

Out of nowhere, a glowing Ace of Clubs landed on the three of Spades and the four of Diamonds, right in front of him. "Need an Ace of Clubs, monsieur?" a trench coated man with a staff across his shoulders purred. Clive looked up, then gasped and looked back at the card. The card was burning, smoking and humming as if it were alive. Clive cried out as it exploded. He slammed against the storage closet behind him, knocking it open and falling to the floor. Leaning against his chair for support he began to get up, but was pushed by the staff into the closet and the door was shut. Leaving him trapped in darkness, he was suddenly very claustrophobic and scared of the dark. He cried for help, but none came.

The mutant that shoved him in there meanwhile, sauntered out of the room, but not before putting the five of Hearts on the six of Spades.

Piotr was waiting patiently for a guard to walk by. He was getting very stiff standing still like that, so he was very glad when someone did come by. The guard's eyes bulged and he whirled around to look at Colossus. The metal giant slowly turned his head toward him, opened his eyes and reached his hand forward to grab him.

Geoffrey Pettismore just had two more weeks to go before he was hired at the police station a few blocks away. He thought tonight would be a relatively calm night. Now looking back as he was chased through the silent halls by a gigantic flaming horse and rider, he laughed at the thought. As he turns the corner, he can hear the laughter of the psycho behind him controlling the fire. The horse passes him and just goes by a storage closet before it turns into a bigger, still flaming, roaring skull. Needless to say, Geoffrey ran in the storage closet. He heard the maniac speak, "Don't fret mate, we'll be outta here in five." 'We'? Oh no, there were more of them?

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

Outside, the X-Men were ready to enter the museum. Iceman powered up. "Oh yeah. Definitely the cool team." The older members ignored his pun.

Cyclops was in full leader mode, "Looks like Magneto has already let himself in."

"You stick with me." Hank McCoy urged Bobby.

"Don't worry, I got your back." The young teen shot back.

"You don't 'have my back'. You don't have a clue." The older man had the last word.

Magneto was searching for Mesmero. He stepped out of the elevator and spotted him at the end of the hallway. He waved his hand and the elevator followed him. Even though it made a lot of noise, no one seemed to notice.

Sabertooth was stalking the halls, looking for a guard to take care of. Outside one of the windows, a familiar figure and scent lurked. Jean Grey. Sabertooth turned menacingly toward the windows. Jean pushed them open and wrapped a nearby curtain around the catlike mutant, restraining him. Angel flew in the front doors and up toward the domed ceilings. A beam of ice cut through the windows, leaving a chilly column in its place. Beast slid down it first, then Iceman. Jean lifted Sabertooth higher as he struggled. He finally got his claws free enough to shed the cloth barrier. He dropped to the ground as the cloth calmly floated down. He got up to teach the girl a lesson when he was confronted by her boyfriend, who shot an optic beam at him, knocking him back into Colossus. The last two Acolytes chose that moment to run up. "Hello, we've got X-men," Pyro smirked.

"And I think they want to play!" Not seeing his chere, Gambit figured it was okay to wipe the floor with her teammates.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

As Mesmero turned the corner, he ran straight into Magnus. Magneto waved his hand and the scary elevator of death sparked forward. Mesmero began to run. The doors opened and closed like a hungry mouth and the cables waved like the tentacles of an octopus.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

Glowing cards were shot toward Angel. Two he shot right back by fluttering his powerful wings. Gambit jumped out of the way before he ended up exploded. The cards hit the pillar behind him, causing it to fall. Colossus scooped it up before it could hit the ground and hurled it at Scott, who blasted it into rubble. Beast jumped onto and off of Colossus' wide shoulders. He grabbed a nearby balcony. Pyro ran forward and shot his flames at the blue man. Hank quickly moved, alternating hands to get away from the fiery hazard. Gambit threw a card. Beast landed on a display case. Sabertooth picked up an information booth and tossed it at him. A beam of ice shot down, shattering the booth, just in time to save him from being smashed. At the top was Iceman. "Like I said, Iceman's got your back," he saluted.

Jean Grey flew up, "Beast, tuck and roll!"

"Let her fly!" Jean lifted him up and flung him at Sabertooth. Angel was flying above and was going to dive-bomb Gambit. The Cajun proceeded to put out his staff and bring it down, trying to crush Angel's skull. He missed and Angel flew up and came back around for another pass, when a stream of fire that turned into a fire demon angel intercepted him. Pyro was laughing down below. Angel flew toward the balconies, then the floor, trying to shake the fire monster. Iceman saw his predicament and leapt off his balcony onto an ice slide. He zipped by Pyro and covered his flamethrowers in ice. Pyro fell over and the fire creation disappeared. Iceman skidded to Angel and gave him the double guns.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

Mesmero burst into the Egyptian hall in the museum. He looked around and sighed, thinking he was safe. He gazed at the other half of the spider and began to move toward it, when the scary elevator of death flew into the room. One of the cables wrapped around his right leg and pulled him into the elevator. He dropped the first half of the spider on the way. The elevator doors closed, trapping him. It was then smashed. Magneto flew into the room. He magnetically pulled the first half of the spider toward him, but for such a little thing, it was stubborn. The second half rattled in its enclosure. It flew up and broke the glass surrounding it. The two halves began to circle each other and with a loud slam, pulled together.

The green spider stone floated toward Magneto and started to glow. The Master of Magnetism put a hand in front of his face to block the light. The light suddenly blew outward, forcing Magnus back into a wall. A spider formed, smaller at first, then growing bigger and bigger until it was horror movie worthy. It made a squealing noise and dropped to the ground. It crawled away from Magneto, but the man is nothing if not stubborn, so he put his hand up and tried to call it back with his power. The spider slowed down, but did not stop. Mesmero knocked the door of the elevator open and slowly crawled out. He looked at the man who was still trying to contain the spider and was failing. He crawled around the elevator and cackled, pulled his hood up and left. The spider seared a hole in the wall and burst through it.

Magneto was still not giving up; he kept pulling, until a post with metal wires in the middle flew toward him and hit him. The spider jumped out of its self-made hole.

The Professor rolled up just in time to witness the spider ruin three cars as it began its walk of terror through London. He glanced back at where the beast had come from and locked eyes with his old friend for a moment. But that moment ended when Magneto walked away. The spider ruined two more cars.

Magneto and his lackeys appeared at the museum doors. Extending his arm, Magneto belted out, "I don't care what it takes, destroy that spider!" His lackeys ran to obey his order, running past Xavier.

"Magnus, stop! We don't know anything about it," Charles, ever the voice of reason, pleaded.

"I know enough that it's one key that will not be unlocking any doors!" Ever hardheaded, Magneto flew away.

The X-Men ran to their leader to collect their orders. "We have to capture it and then protect it. That spider stone houses answers we need."

"We're on it, Professor," the visor-wearing man assured. The team rushed to catch up with their evil counterparts.

Colossus was rushing the building the spider went in, the metallic sound of his feet slapping the ground echoing. He smashed through four walls before he caught up with the spider. The spider went through the fifth and final wall of the building a few seconds before the metal man. The shiny giant ran alongside it for a few more seconds, then jumped and grabbed its head. He was pulled off by a leg and electrocuted, then thrown into the hole-y building.

On top of the building, Sabertooth had a wooden beam. He jumped down, landing on the spider's head, then slapped it silly with the beam. The spider used its two front legs to separate Sabertooth from his beam and toss each one in a different direction. He landed on a parked van and the car alarm went off.

Pyro walked up and shot at the spider. The flames surrounded it. "Yeah," he congratulated himself, "Ha ha, barbequed spider, specialty of the house!" He pulled the flames back into his flamethrowers and gasped, expecting to see spider a la Pyro, but was met with nothing. "It's gone down under." (A/R: I can't believe I just typed that!) The street began to buckle and Pyro jumped away. The now underground spider moved toward the river.

Gambit was standing on a nearby building. He leapt off once he saw the spider pass.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

Mesmero was trying to make a quiet getaway. "Xavier!" he addressed the big, bad (not really), bald man himself.

"Mesmero," he moved forward, "I want answers." There was a hard, angry, seldom-seen look on the usually kind man's face. The wheelchair-bound telepath entered the second's mind. Mesmero groaned in pain. Xavier saw the key made of rings, the door opening, Mesmero in mental agony, a pair of fearsome eyes, and just as Rogue's face came to his mind, he was brutally knocked out.

Rogue stepped forward. "It's about time! Where were you?" the tattooed mutant exclaimed. He didn't really want or expect an answer, since he was controlling her, and he wasn't disappointed. She kept her creepy voice to herself.

Charles Xavier came to moments later, but by then Rogue and her controller were gone. "Vanished; Apocalypse," Charles murmured.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

The spider came to the end of its underground route and burst forth into the river. Angel soared down, "It's in the river! There!" He flew right over it as the X-Men ran up. Jean floated up and tried to pull it out. She succeeded in pulling it up out of the water for about ten seconds, then it broke the telekinetic hold she had on it. Jean flew back, the spider went back to finish its swim, and Cyclops caught Jean.

The spider was making fast progress to the other side and Cyclops began to fire optic blasts at it. "Scott, don't damage it," Jean reminded him.

The spider emerged. "Just trying to slow it down," the leader called back.

"Iceman, bridge us over." Beast commanded.

"Hang on!" Bobby raised a glowing hand. A rapidly growing ice bridge appeared. Hank McCoy looked back at the other two X-Men members of the team, who were impressed. Angel flew alongside.

The spider caused quite a panic when it got to the other side. People screamed and ran. It was for the best really, the thing had a job to do and by gum it was going to do it! Several cars screeched and slid when the drivers caught sight of the giant green arachnid. A bus approached fearlessly with Gambit at the wheel. "Been waiting for ya." He twisted the wheel and the bus turned on its side, skidding over the spider. Gambit jumped just seconds before impact. Remy ran back and charged the bus. Not his normal pink color, but a sickly green. Angel was overhead, but once he recognized the buzzing, he flew away as fast as his wings could take him.

The bus exploded and sent a cloud of smoke into the air. Gambit watched from a safe distance. "I do believe that slowed it down," he pulled on his glove.

His boss came floating down behind him, "Just long enough." Gambit moved to avoid the feet that would have hit him. Magneto levitated toward the explosion site. The spider emerged, unscathed. The rest of Magneto's lackeys walked up along with the X-copter and the X-team. From around the corner, Mesmero and Rogue were waiting. Mesmero was just about to make Magnus kill the spider when he was stricken by a bout of weakness; he blacked-out and Rogue took over.

Magneto reached a hand forward. "Don't do it Magnus! Do not destroy it!" The now conscious Professor said.

"I must!" Now Rogue forced both hands forward. Magneto, groaning with the strain, finally put both hands on the spider. It vanished in a bright blue light. Wind blew and all covered their faces as Magneto knelt with the spider stone in his hands.

"You've done the very thing Mesmero wanted," the Professor wheeled up next to his stubborn friend.

"No, the key has been destroyed," the Master of Magnetism pushed away the hands of Colossus, who was trying to help him up.

"And he knew that only you had the power to do it." Sabertooth, Gambit, Pyro, and Colossus were at their boss' side as Professor Xavier explained, "That wasn't just a key; it was a guardian, designed to prevent Apocalypse's release. And with its destruction, the second door will now open." The X-Men came to stand by their leader's side. Magneto looked ashamed and angry. "He used you Magnus, from the beginning."

"He was heading directly southeast." Angel pointed in that direction.

"But where was he going?" Hank mused.

"I don't know. But it is in our best interest to find out, because when Mesmero finds the third and final key, the world as we know it will change forever."

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

At a cave inside a mountain, a slab of rock with a carving on it glowed, and then rose into the wall.

Author's Ramblings continued: Ok so this is actually an episode, I don't think I did it very well. All right, that was the longest thing I've ever done, so review!


	5. Chapter 5

Author Ramblings: I have nothing to say, wow. I'm speechless! Please review. Normal/_Flashback_

Disclaimer: I said I own X-Men and now I'm in jail. Please send a cake with a file in it.

No. No. No. No! NO!

Stop, please stop. Don't make me do it. Get out of my head! Give me my body back! Don't hurt the Professor and my friends!

The plane of Rogue's mind, usually so full of life and color, was dark. There was a thick layer of smoke starting on the ground and continuing up to the invisible ceiling; the smoke smelled like a nursing home and a funeral home. In the recesses of Rogue's mind is a cage made of rusty mile-high metal poles. Rogue looked gloomily out from her prison. When she got out of here, several people were going to find themselves at the mercy of the Rogue. She can still remember how she became trapped in her mind:

_She was walking home alone after a long day of glares and jeers from her fellow classmates. She was cheered up at the thought of all the makeup work she had already done, while being bored in the med lab. She only had an essay for English and a twenty-problem math assignment to go, then she was done. She decided to cut through an alley to get home faster. In a darkened doorway of the alley, she spots an old man. His gray hair was long and unwashed. His clothes looked like they hadn't had a good wash in years. Rogue felt sorry for the man, and she felt angry with herself for griping about her life, when others have it worse. She dug around in her backpack and found some spare change she had found. There was two dollars and nine cents. It wasn't much, but Rogue went over to put it in his outstretched hand anyway. The next thing she knows, she gets knocked upside her head and drops like a stone on the dirty ground. The last thing she sees before she blacks out, is a man with a lot of tattoos._

Rogue came out of her flashback with scorn. How could she not have recognized the man who controlled four of her teammates? 'I wonder what he wants with me. Oh look, I'm back at the mansion.'

Indeed, she was. Mr. McCoy was very upset she had left the med bay, and now Rogue was ordered to stay there. Since Mesmero did not want to arouse anyone's suspicions, he bid her to stay there when he didn't need her.

A few weeks after the spider incident, the Professor thought the students could use a break. So he decided that a cruise would be a lovely way for everyone to relax. Kurt, who had been hanging around the med lab like it was his second room since Rogue had been staying there, burst into the room one day and told Rogue the news. Mesmero heard and was not pleased to have his pawn so far away from him. So when the time came for Rogue's physical and mental examinations to see if she was well enough to go on the trip, Mesmero made her act sick. The teachers bought it and the gang left without her. Kurt and Kitty went too, so at least while they were gone she could get some decent food.

Kurt bamfed into her room as soon as he put his stuff in his room. He told Rogue about the trip and Magma's little adventure with the volcano.

Another week passed and Rogue was still in the med lab. Then one minute, she was free. No more cage, no more bars. She didn't know what happened, but Mesmero's hold on her let up. So she got up, got dressed and walked around the mansion. It was eerily quiet. There were no signs of life. There was no loud music, no arguments, and no food being cooked and stolen. Rogue crossed her arms over her chest. She fought the urge to shiver; it really was that creepy. She walked to the library; normally her sanctuary, now she thought it would be her grave.

There was the slightest noise from the other side. People! She went to the doors and tried to open them, when they were suddenly wrenched open and she was met with a powered-up Cyclops and Berzerker. She jumped back and held her hand up, "Whoa, stop, it's meh." Scott and Ray both heaved a huge sigh of relief. Scott pulled her in a little too hard, and added to her apparent unsteadiness on her feet, she almost fell.

She ran a few steps to keep herself upright, and Scott closed the doors. She turned around. "What's goin' on?" Yeah, being stuck in the med bay for weeks means that she isn't up to speed with all the latest events, especially since Kurt hadn't visited yet.

Scott's answer made her forget Mesmero, "Someone's infiltrated the Institute. They've already taken down the Professor."

"Oh no!" So much for her plan of quietly telling the Professor and maybe getting some more mind barriers. She'll just have to tell him when the emergency is over.

Scott and Ray kneeled over the Professor. Ray looks at the blinking device on the Professor's forehead, "It's small, but I think I can zap it off of him."

Scott leans in for a closer look, thinking, "Do it."

Ray raises his hand and powers up. Just as his hand is inches away, Logan bursts in the other set of doors behind them. "Don't!" Rogue squeals. "Those things are wired to explode," he warns. Ray gets his hand away as fast as he can.

"Logan," Scott stands up, "who's doing all this?"

Logan says, "We got to get you three out of here."

Scott shakes his head, "No, I'm not leaving without the others."

"Meh neither." Rogue chimes in.

Ray walks up, "I'm staying too."

Logan growls.

Scott and Logan throw open the doors to the den. The place is wrecked; furniture is broken, there are holes in the floor. And amidst it all are the unconscious but alive bodies of Storm and Sunspot.

"This is impossible." Ray states, "The Professor, Storm, Bobby. Not even you could take us all out!" he finishes, looking at Logan.

Logan whirls around and growls, then stalks out. They come to the living room next and find Multiple and Beast. Scott can't take seeing his friends like this and talks to Logan, "You have to tell us what's going on."

Logan finally speaks, "It's complicated." Claws come from the floor and cut a square around Logan. He falls. A girl jumps from the hole and unleashes a flying kick on Ray. He blasts where she was but she moves on to Cyclops, who also blasts and misses. She jumps behind him and kicks, connecting with his chest and pushing him back between Rogue and Ray.

Rogue can feel Mesmero trying to take back her mind; he wants her to absorb the girl.

Ray blasts and gets kicked into a bookshelf. The girl finally unleashes her claws when Scott moves to challenge her.

"You've givin' meh no choice." Rogue pulls off her right glove and moves behind the girl.

The girl sniffs a lot like Wolverine. Ray shoots at her but she back flips away from it, heading toward Rogue. She jumps behind Rogue, avoiding the ungloved hand and goes for her sleeves. She puts a foot on her lower back and rolls so she is on the ground with Rogue in the air. She then rips Rogue's sleeves off and pushes her toward Ray and Scott, who are just standing there. The boys collapse, but Rogue is now fighting Mesmero plus the two new psyches she just received.

She is relieved when the girl puts the device on her head and she sinks into blissful unconsciousness. When she opens her mental eyes, she is back in her cage. Her captor is standing in front of her. His smirk sent cold shivers down her spine, but she refused to show it. "I hope you haven't missed me, my dear. You see, I had some errands to run and was temporarily unable to keep up this marvelous arrangement we have."

She rattles the bars of her cage, "What arrangement? I'm in a prison in my own mind while you use my body as your own personal puppet!"

There is only a quiet and ominous chuckle as her controller fades into the background of her mind, but the cage stays strong. She can only imagine what he will have her do next.

She sits in her room alone, staring into space. She hears someone clear their throat and she looks up. Logan and the Professor are at her door. The Professor rolls forward, "I was worried when I couldn't find you in the infirmary."

"It's okay Professor," her southern drawl slides off her tongue without her permission. "Really, Ah'm feelin' much better."

"Good," Logan jumps in, "because I need you for a training session outside."

Again she speaks when not wanting to, "Well, not that much better." For some reason, Mesmero didn't want her to train.

Logan chuckles, "I think you'll like this one." She gets suited up and steps out with Scott and Logan. The new recruits are already out there, but come in when they see Logan approach. Logan announces mutant dodge ball and they all run off. Rogue sees the Professor roll up and phases into the ground so she can hear what they're saying. It was nothing important.

'Honestly, Xavier hopes to defeat our master with nice words?' She can feel as well as hear Mesmero's mental voice in her head.

'Yeah, he does,' Rogue responded.

That night at bedtime, she said goodnight to Kitty as normal and decided to talk to her captor. 'Why do you make me say goodnight to Kitty?'

She wasn't really expecting an answer, so she was surprised when Mesmero materialized in front of her cage. 'Because my dear girl, now, when we are so close to raising the master is not the time to make others suspect you are not in control of your body.'

She figured since he was in an answering mood why not ask more? 'Who is the master and why does he want meh?' But she received no answer.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

That night, the mansion was silent. Only one shadow moved. Rogue crept along stealthily. She opened the door to the Professor's room and put a hand on his face. She moved on. Next was Jean, she was dealt with, then came the rest of the mansion. She only had Kitty and Scott to go. She did Scott first. He, unfortunately cried out, and the only non-mind-controlled conscious person in the mansion heard him. Rogue moved on to Kitty.

Kitty blurrily blinked her baby blues open and mumbled, "Scott?" She put her stuffed dragon down and removed her covers. She got up and went to the door. Before she could open it, the doorknob rattled. Kitty gasped as the door slowly moved. She moved behind it. As the person went into her room, she phased through the wall. She couldn't see who it was. She ran to her fearless leader's room. "Scott, are you alright?" Kitty moved closer and put her hands on his chest to shake him. His head flopped back toward her, startling her and she moved back right into mind-controlled Rogue's bare hand.

Kitty fell to the floor.

Rogue picked her roommate up off of Scott's floor and put her back into her bed, using the telekinesis she stole from Jean. 'What. Are. You. DOING?' Rogue was freaking out; Mesmero was making her absorb all of her friends. What if she lost control again? She's never used her powers so much all in a row like that! Again, a dark chuckle echoed in her mind. Rogue settled down to sleep, her job complete.

Kitty's alarm clock went off at precisely eight thirty-four. She groaned and resisted getting up, but soon turned her alarm off and phased through her pillow. She got a few feathers in her mouth for her trouble. "Oh," she moaned, "my head. What a nightmare." She looked at her clock, it said eight thirty-five. "Oh no!" She got up, got ready and went to wake her roommate to discover Rogue was already awake.

Kitty phased into Kurt's room with her toothbrush to find the fuzzy one still in bed. "Kurt! Wake up! Everyone overslept!"

A furry blue tail rose from the covers and hit the snooze button on the alarm clock that was blaring as Kitty made her announcement. "Oh, five more minutes." He groaned.

Kitty rolled her eyes and phased her hands through the blanket to grab him, "Come on, we're missing our last day of school!"

That woke Kurt up, "No way!" He tossed the covers off and ported himself and Kitty downstairs.

Rogue rubbed the fog off the mirror. "Ugh. What a bizarre dream. Think Ah need some therapy." 'Hey!' Rogue mentally shouted.

'What? You do.' Her controller smirked; lately he was appearing and staying more and more, which can only mean that this big thing was going to happen soon.

Down in the kitchen, it was pandemonium as always. Ray was making a milkshake, Kurt was setting the table, Amara was making eggs, Scott was getting bagels, and Bobby was chilling the drinks. Rogue came to the doorway, she was rubbing her temples. She groaned in pain and looked at all the teens. She watched Kitty phase through the fridge and remove several items, only to toss them behind her for Jamie and Roberto to catch.

Rogue started to glare, "Ah think Ah'm goin' to pass on breakfast." She rubbed the bridge of her nose and walked away.

The X-Men that went to Bayville High were dropped off. All ran to get inside. But Rogue walked; she wasn't up to running. A black limo came up behind her. As her friends went out of sight, she stopped and turned around. The back door opened for her. She slid in the limo and shut the door. 'Where are we going?' Rogue mentally asked.

'To start the plan.' Her captor was so happy, he was almost dancing a jig.

The next thing Rogue knew, they were at the Brotherhood Boarding House. The place was shaking, almost like it was jumping up and down. But no, it was just Toad who was jumping. He stopped with a shout from Blob. Pietro zoomed out to get the paper.

Rogue sneaked around the wall of the house. Inside, Wanda, having had enough of the idiots she lived with, decided to go upstairs for some quiet. She was interrupted when the doorbell rang. The door opened by itself, as Wanda didn't touch it and no one was on the other side. She curiously moved to look out. She heard that idiot Toad say something. She went back inside and was suddenly lifted up. She came face to face with Rogue. Rogue put her hands on the younger girl's face. Wanda moaned in surprise and dropped like a stone.

In the living room, Toad and Blob were enjoying some breakfast and some morning cartoons. Toad said around his bite of stolen cereal, "I hope Wanda ain't messing with the door to door salesmen again."

Lance sauntered out of the kitchen with his own bowl of cereal. He took a bite, but stopped chewing when he saw Wanda collapsed in the front entranceway. Rogue flew down next to him and put her right hand under his chin. Lance moaned and collapsed.

Rogue stopped to observe the idiots in the living room. Blob was pigging out from a big bowl of cereal and Toad was perched on the back of the couch. She used Wanda's power on the bowl. She lifted it up, then slammed it on Toad's head, knocking him off the couch. She does three back flips with the last one landing her behind Toad. She shoved the bowl of cereal on his head again, then flipped back to the doorway. She then does one flip and lands on Freddy's head. She puts both hands on his cheeks and squeezes. He groans and passes out, head flopping to the side.

She moves so her knees are on his shoulders and turns to look at Toad. He has finally removed the now slimy and greasy bowl from his head. He looks back at Rogue stupidly for a few seconds and screams. It dawns on him that he should run and gives it the old college try. But wherever he hops, Rogue teleports there. He finally corners himself and Rogue teleports in front of him, putting both hands on the wall on both sides of his face. He looks at the bare hands then at Rogue. She lifts her hand, he manages a few last words, "I hate this part." He's done.

Pietro hears the various noises coming from Rogue subduing his teammates and rushes downstairs to investigate. "What-is-going-on-down-there?" He sees the bodies of his sister and Lance passed out in the entryway, then turns and sees Freddy. He rushes for a closer look and stops when he sees his big teammate is unconscious. He turns again and rushes to Toad on the ground. Pietro puts one hand on his hip and one he uses to scratch his head. Rogue phases down from the ceiling to float behind Pietro. He sees her shadow and moves away. "Hey! What's-going-on?" he questions. Rogue slowly turns around and opens her eyes, revealing red-orange orbs. Pietro gasps and takes a few baby steps away. Rogue floats higher and Pietro runs toward the stairs. He makes it about halfway up before he is pulled up a few inches so his feet can't reach the stairs. He is held in place, still running. He looks behind him as he is pulled down the staircase. Rogue levitates into the doorway, raising a hand. Pietro still struggles, but it is no use and he falls like the others.

Rogue prowls from the now silent Brotherhood House. She moves down the front walk, to the street where the limo waits. A door opens and Mystique gets out. She smiles and puts a motherly hand on her foster daughter's back as the mind-controlled Rogue gets in the car. Mystique follows her in, the door shuts and the car drives away.

After her long day of skipping school to absorb the Brotherhood, Rogue is returned home. The others get home soon after that. The teachers ask the usual questions. There is an air of excitement because it's summer vacation! No more pencils, no more books, and no more EVERYONE'S dirty looks. The trashcans are overflowing with different supplies. Rogue keeps to herself, claiming to not feel well as an excuse to avoid the family dinner.

A little later, Rogue is torn away from her book to serve again. She phases outside. It is raining, lovely. 'Be careful, these pants are dry-clean only,' Rogue mentally gripes. Still in her green hoodie, black undershirt, and black pants with gray stripes on the side, she walks to the limo, which is once again waiting for her.

After a drive that could have lasted an hour or a minute the car stops outside what looks to be an abandoned warehouse. Rogue examines the building from inside the limo with a critical eye. She spots an open window. "The window." Her voice is not the scary voice she used with Magneto and his lackeys. Since she got back to the med lab, her voice was normal, if not a little scratchy. Right now, her voice sounds a bit strained and a tad deeper.

Mystique looks where her daughter indicates. She smiles and holds out her bare hand to Rogue, who grabs it. Mystique moans then passes out.

Rogue steps out of the car. It is still raining. Shutting the door behind her, she runs a few steps forward then transforms into an owl. She screeches as she flies to the window. The building also transforms as she flies into it. It transforms from a normal warehouse to a metal fortress. The Rogue-owl flies down. About two feet from the ground and behind a crate, she transforms. She runs right up next to the crate and peeks out.

There is the sound of pounding. It is steady, but fierce in that it almost shakes the entire building. Colossus comes into view, all metaled up and carrying a crate above his head. He walks down a short ramp and turns left, putting his back to Rogue. Not a good move. Rogue uses Toad's powers to jump the ten or so feet from the crate where she was taking cover, to behind Colossus. She raises a hand to his neck. When she makes contact he whips around, but it is too late. His strength flows into Rogue and the crate he was carrying becomes heavier. He groans, trying to keep hold of the crate, but fails and the crate crushes them both.

Rogue uses her bare hand to punch out the wall of the crate. She emerges, dragging Colossus' body. She hears growling. From behind another crate Sabertooth jumps out, plowing into Rogue. She skids onto her side on the floor. Sabertooth roars and leaps toward her, hands outstretched. Rogue metals up her right hand, using Colossus' power and draining Sabertooth. They are in an arm-wrestling match/hand shake. As he loses power and she gains it, he sinks lower and lower to the floor, until he finally collapses.

Rogue pulls her hand up to admire it, when in its shininess she sees the reflection of fire and hears the laughter of a maniac. Pyro. She turns toward him. He steps forward off the crates he was on, "Awful bold of ya comin' here girl. Or are ya just stupid?" He raises his flamethrowers toward her and shoots. Rogue cries out as the fire hits her, putting her hands up to protect her face. Pyro starts to laugh, but it is cut short. Rogue steps out of the fire, all metaled up and her clothes reduced to rags. She marches forward, steps echoing. She reaches out a hand to grab Pyro's face, who is just standing there staring. He moans and passes out. Rogue throws him into some crates.

From behind her she hears clapping. "Bravo, Cherie." Gambit. He has his bo-staff ready on his shoulder. He saunters from where he is leaning on the wall to confront Rogue. "Looks to me like Rogue's up to no good. But hey, I like that in a girl." He points his staff in the middle of her chest. She pushes it away as she de-metals. She prowls toward Gambit, forcing him back. He holds his staff protectively in front of himself. "Only thing is, you're not alone in this, are you?" He walks down a bigger ramp; she has her hand waving in front of herself threateningly. They come to flat floor again. Gambit grunts in frustration, "Who's behind it, Mystique?" He fires at the unresponsive Rogue. He jumps on a crate as she swings her arm at him. She grunts as he jumps onto a crate, avoiding her. "I think so. Question is, why?" He twirls his staff. She pulls some telekinesis and throws him at the wall. She then jumps on top of him, trying to absorb him. He puts his feet up to keep her away.

"See if you can guess." The first words she's said since she's entered the Acolytes domain. Gambit flips Rogue off him and stands up. He looks around for the stripe-haired girl, but doesn't spot her until it's too late. She comes up behind him, phases through his staff, and kisses him. He groans, then falls to the floor.

In her mind, Rogue is flabbergasted. 'WHAT. WAS. THAT? I didn't want to kiss him!' Mesmero is nowhere to be seen though and her question goes unanswered.

Magneto strides into the room, cape flowing dramatically in the nonexistent breeze. He looks around at his lackeys: Colossus in the remains of a crate, Pyro on top of a crate, Sabertooth on the floor, and Gambit leaning against the little ramp. All of them unconscious. Magneto stops next to Gambit's body. "Rogue," he states. "Where are you?" He then spots Gambit's body leaning up against some crates. "What?" The Master of Magnetism is now face to face with The Rogue. She puts a hand up to touch his exposed face. He tries to resist, but she is too strong with all the powers she has. Magneto collapses.

Rogue walks out of the silent headquarters, past all the bodies with a glare on her face. She gets back into the limo and is once again dropped off at the mansion.

The next day is Scott's and Jean's graduation. Rogue is forced to go. She is dragging because of the overworking of her powers. Rogue almost falls asleep in the bleachers. Finally, the ceremony starts and that windbag Kelly gets up to talk. Pietro walks along the side of the field, it looks like he is searching for something. Rogue turns and they make eye contact. Rogue looks away; she is grateful for the adults that were stopping Pietro from coming closer. "Oh no!" Principal Kelly stops, staring at the end of the field. The crowd gets restless and looks in the same direction. Blob, Gambit, Pyro, Toad, Sabertooth, Colossus, and Magneto were sauntering their way up the field. The murmurs of the crowd intensify and people begin to run. The graduating students flee from the mutants. Principal Kelly tries to calm everyone down, but it isn't going so well.

Her captor's voice in her head tells her to get away, but the next thing she knows, "Not so fast Rogue!" Pietro has finally gotten to her. He picks her up and leaves her in the middle of the field in front of his father. Magneto glares and the metal chairs that were being used for the ceremony lift off the ground and begin to circle Rogue.

Behind a nearby bleacher, Mesmero watches. His eyes flash red. Rogue's do too.

"Magneto, explain yourself." The Professor orders, and he doesn't sound happy.

"The girl is under Mesmero's control, Charles! She attacked us to absorb our powers then wiped our minds with his power to cover it up." 'Idiots.' Her controller's mental voice is loud in her head and she wonders how the Professor and Jean can't hear it.

"What proof do you have?" The Professor answers back.

"My surveillance cameras, they captured it all." Suddenly Rogue floats up, taking the metal chairs circling her. She puts her arms up, then wrenches them back down, making the chairs fly in every direction. Some fly at the Master of Magnetism and his lackeys, some at the X-Men. Magneto stops the ones coming at him with his power. Gambit knocks the ones coming at him away with his bo-staff. Kitty phases through a few but one knocks her off her feet. Kurt gets nailed twice. Principal Kelly is hiding behind the microphone stand. Rogue flies up into the sky, in full view of everyone. She makes a star-shape with her arms and legs, and then soars out of sight. The metal chairs stop.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

Rogue slides into the limo, which is conveniently parked a few blocks away from the school. Mesmero is driving and Mystique is in the backseat with Rogue. The two talked about something; maybe it was Rogue since they are looking at her. She couldn't hear. After another ride, the car stops. The trio gets out at an airport. They sneak onto the runway to a waiting plane. The crew is just standing around outside, doing nothing. They don't seem surprised when a man in a cloak with several tattoos, a blue woman, and a Goth girl walk up and get into their plane. Mesmero once again flies, while the mother and daughter sit in the first class section. This time, the flight is long and Rogue is trying to keep busy by thinking of her teammates. She figures they're probably on their way right now to get her. 'Don't get your hopes up,' the captor smirked. 'Oh no, how can I with you around?' Rogue is in a difficult mood. 'Where are we going? What do you want with me?' There is no answer. 'You know, that's getting really annoying.'

Silence reigns.

Author Ramblings continued: Okay so now we're through Dark Horizon part 1 up next part two. I can't decide how I'm tweaking it.


	6. Chapter 6

Author Ramblings: AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! *Gasp* Yes, it really is PrettypurpleRogue. No, I'm not dead. I just haven't had time. I had school and finals, then getting sick and watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer and watching Angel. So yeah, I've been busy but I'm back now. And it occurs to me that it has been like forever since I did review responses.

Rogueslove22- Thanks for the complements and for putting up with me for this long.

angelloverkk- Here is another update. Thanks for reviewing.

Demon Flame- Hope you enjoy; thanks for talking to me!

unknown- Thanks. I hope you won't be disappointed.

Icelynne- Thank you so much, you're making me blush :).

Shadow-The Black Queen- Yes, I do enjoy multiple personalities, if they're not there the excuse "The voices made me do it" doesn't work very well.

Midnight MoonXX- Thanks. I'm going to try to do better on the spacing.

Awsome KC2622- Are you saying I creep you out? Excellent…. mwahahaha. Okay, now I'm creeping myself out.

KaliAnn- All your reviews are great so: 1.) No offense, but not an image I want to see. 2.) She didn't have to do much. 3.) You'll see.

Raven34link- Thanks, and I know; great team-mates aren't they? (not)!

Disclaimer: *Me being kicked out of the Marvel/Disney offices*

Security Guy- "And stay out!"

Me- * looks dramatically upwards * "Why? Why can't I own them? Why cruel world, why?" *Curls up into a little ball*

The plane lands. The quiet, almost peaceful calm-before-the-storm atmosphere shifts into one of anticipation and excitement. For Rogue, it is one of fear and dread. The door opens and the trio makes the long and hard climb to the top of the gigantic mountain they're on. At the top lies the sleeping master, who isn't sleeping anymore.

Apocalypse's eyes shoot open. He can feel a huge energy source making its way toward him. He can also feel his idiot lackey and the blue woman with it. 'Huh, well what do you know, he came through.' As the great coffin-bound one contemplates his lackey, we go back to the trio.

'My word does this woman ever shut up?' Mesmero was about at the end of his rope. This Mystique woman would not stop pestering him with questions about her future. 'I'm starting to see why the brat hates her so much.' His attention snaps to Rogue, who seems to care less about whatever her foster mother is prattling on about. 'Sheesh, by the way the woman is talking it sounds like she actually expects all those promises I made to come true. What, does she not get the concept of evil villains = liars? Ugh, I swear, if I have to hear one more whine, mind-walls or not, I'm turning her into a four-month old.'

Rogue's mind is hectic, more so than usual, in fact. The other psyches she thought Mesmero locked away from her, were back in strength; they could feel the building hysteria Rogue had about the situation at hand and they weren't helping. AT. ALL.

'We always knew you were going hurt everyone and kill everything you touch!'

'You should have listened to us!'

'Rogue…. Rogue…. Rogue!'

Their words pulled at her like tree branches in the woods. There was a symphony in her head, but no harmony the words; the hate, the mocking, it all blended together into a loud mess that made Rogue think her head might explode.

She runs as far away as she can in her cage, from the voices taunting her before collapsing. 'I can't believe it; I'm going to destroy the world! I bet Mama is proud.' She is drowning in bitterness. But the sudden mention of her mother; her true mother, not her shabby excuse for a foster guardian, startled her. 'It's been a while since I thought of her. Might as well, seeing as the world will end and I'll die soon.' With that last thought, she hummed the lullaby her mother used to sing to her.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

The X-mansion and everyone in it is tense. They all can sense a new beginning and a final battle drawing near. No one goes near the Danger Room, because that's where Wolverine and Sabertooth set up shop. The room, and anything within twenty feet of it, smells like death, pain, and gore.

The older X-Men are trying to keep the X-kids busy with training outside and preparation. The adults are frantically talking amongst themselves to try to get a clue on how this happened. Magneto keeps quiet. The rest of the Acolytes were thrown out of the meeting when Pyro threatened to "Fry the cue ball". They are now moping around by themselves because no way would they be caught dead with the wannabes of the Brotherhood or the do-gooders of the X-Men.

Suddenly, on the loudspeaker the Professor had installed for a purpose like this, an announcement sounds: "Testing, testing 1-2-3. Am I on? Attention everyone, attention! Please report to the hangar, we have discovered a lead." Magneto now comes on: "Acolytes and Brotherhood, this means you too. And be quick about it!" The speaker crackles, now dead.

'Oh goody,' Remy thinks, 'a chance to work with the famous "Aren't we the best", fair-playing, too-good-for-our-own-good, X-Men. Yippee.'

Everyone assembles, and the X-Jet, X-Helicopter, and X-Something else that flies took off.

In the X-Jet were Cyclops, Jean, Shadowcat, Pyro, Colossus, Quicksilver, Iceman, Storm, Beast, and Nightcrawler.

In the X-Something else that flies, were the rest of the Brotherhood and the rest of the X-kids. In the X-Helicopter were Magneto, the Professor, Gambit, Sabertooth, and Wolverine.

"Gentlemen," the Professor starts, "you will have a very special mission. You are going to track down Rogue and her captors. You will be starting where we last saw her at the high school. Good luck." The Master of Magnetism nods at them then shoves them out at 10,000 feet.

The helicopter flies off with the others, and the three mutants fall, and with minor injuries, land at the bottom. There are complaints, curses, moans, glares, and a brief scuffle but they get down to business. The two sniffers sniff, while Gambit looks on with a mixture of amusement and disgust. They finally get the trail. Gambit hotwires some bikes parked in front of a nearby bar and they are off!

The trail stops at an abandoned limo and yet another fight breaks out. This time Gambit has had enough. He gets out his Bo-staff, "Here's a bulletin. Now this ain't about you pit bulls. Let's go find Rogue."

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

At this exact moment in Egypt, getting into the tomb is a breeze, now they have to find Apocalypse. Suddenly, all the statues around the room come alive. The door closes. "We're trapped." Cyclops words helps the cold grip of fear grab everyone.

~XXXXXXXXXXXXXX~

At the real tomb in Tibet, Mesmero smiles, "It is finally time for the master to rise. Bring them forth!" Rogue steps away from the tomb entrance.

Author Ramblings continued: Wow, cliffy. I just love those things! Please review and remember, I take anything, requests, criticism, advice, and flames. Be back much sooner this time.


	7. Chapter 7

Author Ramblings: I'm back (again)! I love this. Here we go! Remember ages, powers, anything are mine to control.

Disclaimer: I don't own X-men, Apocalypse does! (Just kidding)

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The three trackers, the Egypt team, all of the Brotherhood, Acolytes, X-men, and the groups' leaders were transported from where they were to the tomb in Tibet. Everyone groaned.

As soon as she was sure her stomach won't rebel on her, Shadowcat said, "Ugh, Kurt what did you do?"

"Nein," Nightcrawler replied, "it wasn't me."

Mesmero rolled his eyes. It was then that everyone saw where they were and who was with them. Almost as one they all leapt to their feet. The Professor was quickly replaced in his wheelchair. Rogue stepped towards them. Her eyes gleamed pure orange, along with Mesmero's, signaling that she was being controlled. They turned red; she was about to release an optic blast.

She did but before it connected with the group it was countered by one of Cyclops'. "Take her down." Was the order. Scott cared for his teammates, that's true but Rogue was too powerful, and from the little demonstration at the high school she was willing to use that power.

Gambit threw cards at her, Cyclops fired blasts at her, Jean threw objects at her, and Iceman threw ice at her. All those with long-range powers threw everything they had at Rogue. Sabertooth, Colossus, Wolverine and others without long-range powers physically threw stuff at her. She took it. Phasing through some, dodging some, countering some with her stolen powers.

The only ones not attacking were three of the X-kids. The mini-Rogues the inhabitants of the mansion had affectionately dubbed them. Amara, Rahne, and Jamie were Rogue's three recruits. She had personally found and brought them to Xavier's. After they were there each one stuck to her like glue.

Amara was first to be recruited. She lived at an orphanage after her parents died. It was an awful place. When her power first manifested she burned three people and destroyed the run-down landscaper's shack. Once that happened, she ran. On the rough streets of Brazil, she didn't know what to do. Barely a day since her accident, a girl about four years older than Amara's thirteen years walked up to her. She introduced herself and the next thing Amara knew she was on her way to the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters. She was plagued by nightmares and Rogue comforted her. Rogue offered to teach her some basics of fighting, since she was well behind the class, having never fought a day in her life. She strategy so far was 'Don't become a target', and it worked for her. Rogue opened her eyes to a world of possibilities with her lessons. She taught her how to use her powers better and to excel in powerless combat. Soon she was ahead of the class. So Rogue remained her teacher.

Then Rahne came. Kicked out by her drunken mess of a father, she was alone on the streets of Scotland for weeks before she came here. She was in a much worse state then Amara, and relied heavily on Rogue for her first few weeks. She was also taught how to fight by Rogue.

Jamie was the last addition to the group. He ran away from home. His powers awakened and he was scared out of his mind. He gave Rogue quite the chase until his legs gave out from hunger. He was also brought under the tutelage of the striped-hair girl.

Now, they were highly trained and the only ones who actually stood a chance against Rogue. What's the saying? There comes a time when the student surpasses the master? As the three children watched their mentor, and mother, take out their allies thy readied for the moment when they would have to take her on.

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The various attacks on Rogue's body were useless, when she had the healing power of Sabertooth and Wolverine. But it wasn't her body the Professor hoped to stop. He was trying to enter Rogue's mind. It wasn't going well.

Suddenly, the Professor and Jean let out a blood-curdling wail. Both went unconscious. That was the straw that broke the camel's back for Scott. He stopped the attack and motioned at the shadows. "Amara, Rahne, Jamie," the mention stepped out of the shadows. They all had suits that matched Rogue's and white streaks like Rogue's. Amara had throwing stars; Rahne had dual wielding swords; and Jamie had two daggers. Amara, the oldest, was at the front of the little V-formation they had formed. She shared a glance with her partners. Rogue's body cocked her head to the side, ready for their attack. Amara spun in two, quick, tight circles. Her body turned to magma and a section of the earth she was standing on rose with her, also on fire. Amara, in the air, Rahne and Jamie on the ground all ran towards Rogue. Amara launched some fiery throwing stars; Rogue flew to the ground to dodge them. Rahne ran up to her, swords drawn. Her swords cut deep into Rogue's chest. Rahne, now on Rogue's left, brings her swords up to make contact with her left carotid artery. Rogue phased through the swords. Several Jamies came at Rogue forcing her back against the wall. Rahne ran up and raised her sword and quickly brought it down, fully intending to put it through Rogue's head. Inches before contact Rogue's hands shot up and stopped the swords by clapping with the sword in between her hands. Rahne and the Jamies retreated so Amara could move in. In her human form, she ran at Rogue. Rogue got up and ran towards Magma. Amara threw several stars, but none made contact. Right before the girls would have collided Rogue jumped a little so her back was against Amara's and she was on top. As gravity carried her back down she locked her elbows with Amara's and just as quickly unlocked them, sending the younger girl back in the direction she came from at high speed. Amara did a roll in mid air and planted her feet on the ground, causing friction that slowed her down and prevented her painful meeting with the wall.

Amara suddenly noticed Rogue and Mesmero's matching eyes and got an idea. Rogue was waiting for the next attack. Amara made the motion to fall back. Rogue still didn't move. Amara explained her plan quickly to her partners. They nodded with approval. Since the room was quite large, at least as big as three football stadiums, there was plenty of room for this to work. "Bobby," Amara called, "I'm going to make some magma and I want you to freeze it, got it?" At the boy's nod, she quickly started shooting magma from her fingertips to, once frozen, form a wall between them and Rogue. After that was finished, Magma sat down and concentrated. To her luck, there were two, almost parallel lines of magma in the earth's crust, under the cave. The wall came down. Amara forced the ground above the magma to crack and bring the magma to the surface. She then forced the magma at Rogue. After a while she pulled the magma back down and closed the cracks she made. Rogue was there; only she was in Magma's magma form. Which was what Amara wanted her to do. She took control of her mentor's body. It was a very hard task. Rogue was struggling and Amara couldn't hold her forever. Rahne turned to Storm and Iceman, "Soak her. Rain, ice, any type of water will work." Storm brought a flood down on her and Iceman froze her. Amara finally let her go. Rogue's ice covered form fell to the cave floor.

All were prepared to take care of Mesmero and Mystique but the ice around Rogue exploded. Amara thought of one last resort move Rogue had taught her. She spun around again this time she didn't stop. Her fire form quickly appeared and got bigger. The fire quickly got bigger and hotter until it was a wall of flames. The wall moved towards Rogue. She passed through it, but it still moved forward. The wall crossed the distance to Mystique and Mesmero. Mystique turned into raven and flew through the flames. She could hold that form because of the pain, and shifted back. She fell to the ground. Amara's wall of flames started back towards her group, passing over Mystique again, who passed out. Once she got closer the flames were snuffed out. Amara collapsed to her knees, severely weakened. Rahne and Jamie ran to her and carried her to the back of the group.

The rest could see Mesmero passed out against the tomb doors, with bad burns. Rogue, sometime during all this, fell. She got back up. Xavier was beginning to wake up but Jean was still down. When he saw Mesmero unconscious and Rogue still controlled he was deeply disturbed. He reached his mind towards his student's. And was promptly kicked out. He gasped.

"What Professor?" Cyclops didn't like this. Not one bit.

"Apocalypse, somehow in his dormant state, has taken control of Rogue." The worse thing that could possibly happen has happened.

"Alright…" For once Scott had no ideas.

"We're ready." The kids were back and Amara looked better. The weapons were out and it was very obvious the kid gloves were off.

This time in the charge Amara went to Rogue's left, while Rahne and Jamie went to her right. Rogue using no powers for now rushed at Amara. But before she got very far Amara launched all of her throwing stars at Rogue. The striped-haired girl dodged all except one that found a home in her left temple. Amara ran closer. Then Rahne pushed her swords through Rogue's chest, one for sure piercing her heart. Jamie ran up and planted one of his daggers in her right temple. Now all together, they all pulled their weapons out of their mother. The white shine that said she was being controlled by Apocalypse faded and Rogue's green-gray eyes were back.

She looked at her children, their bloody weapons, and herself, which seemed to be drenched in blood. "Good job." She coughed and blood started running out of her mouth. The lookers on who seemed to be paralyzed up until now were shocked. Wolverine and Sabertooth were the first to snap out of it. They were, surprisingly, on the same page. They both rushed at Rogue with speeds that impressed Pietro. They both pressed their bare hands to Rogue's cheeks. They couldn't feel the pull of her powers. In slow motion almost, Rogue's body fell to the ground.

Author Ramblings continued: * GASP * How could I kill her? She's dead…. OR IS SHE? Review to find out.


	8. Chapter 8

Author Ramblings: Hi, well under threat (my first review threat!) I'm back. Thanks to all who review, I'd do shout outs but I don't currently have Internet, but maybe later. OH! Some exciting news: I now have a new beta! So everyone please put your hands together for Ace-of-Cyberspace13! _Flashback_/ Normal

Disclaimer: I don't own the X-men or anything mentioned.

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It was completely silence. Slowly, Wolverine bent down and picked up Rogue's body. The mutants left the cave with tails between legs and heads hung low.

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Eyes popped open. A malicious smile appeared. "I. HAVE. AWAKENED!" The cave exploded in a fiery burst of light and Apocalypse emerged. He flew to where Rogue's blood had spilled. "You have freed me. You shall be rewarded."

BANG!

Apocalypse was gone.

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No one spoke, no one looked at one another, and no one breathed. The body Wolverine was carrying was weighing everyone down. Some felt failure crush them; some sighed in sorrow, some were just empty.

The Professor, who thought it best to explore the tunnel under the cave to find a way out, was being buried alive by the regret and pain. The senior X-men all felt some degree of failure, with Scott being the worst. How could they let their teammate die? The junior X-men were trying to understand. Weren't the good guys supposed to win? The mini-Rogues were numb, there but not there. Amara was holding Jamie's hand too tight, Jamie was pulling Rahne's hair, and Rahne was clinging to Amara's leg. But no one noticed, they couldn't feel.

Finally, the ragtag band of mutants found some futuristic device the Professor could mentally control and that could get them back home. At the mansion Charles offered his old friend and his workers a place to stay. They accepted. Wolverine made the longest walk of his life to the med lab. Beast followed. He went through the motions of declaring her dead (A/R: I'm not a doctor, so this probably isn't accurate.). He pulled a white sheet over her face. That was it; she's gone. The two men moved to the door, and Beast was about to warily switch off the lights. The sheet jerked. A gasp echoed. The figure under the sheet shot up like a lightening bolt.

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Author's Ramblings continued: No! I didn't kill her! She's my favorite character and the main person in this story. But I scared you huh? Please review.


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